


A Nose For Trouble

by sfblah



Category: Original Work
Genre: Allergies, F/F, Female Sneezing, Macro/Micro, Nose Fetish, Sneezing, sneeze fetish, sneeze fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-27
Updated: 2020-05-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:16:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26994283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sfblah/pseuds/sfblah
Summary: An adventurous pixie meets a restless human princess, both with a lot to learn about the world.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7





	1. Chapter 1

Rain fell heavy across the countryside, strong winds bending the trees to and fro. Most every creature had hunkered down for the night, but one foolhardy soul attempted to brave the storm. A tiny pixie named Plume bobbed and weaved between the raindrops, each one threatening to send her crashing to the ground. She was already soaking wet, but as long as her wings still beat, she refused to stop. Fortunately, she didn’t have too much farther to go before she could finally rest.

Eventually Plume came upon a sizable villa. Human settlements could be risky, but Plume was no stranger to pushing her luck. She didn’t need to stay long, just long enough to wait out the rain. The pixie soared toward the nearest window: it was shut tight by clumsy human standards, but not tight enough for her. She squeezed in through an admittedly narrow gap, and finally the storm was no longer a worry.

_ “Hih! Hi’kshi!” _

Plume doubled over with a tiny, high-pitched sneeze. The room may have been dry, but it still wasn’t especially  _ warm. _ After rubbing her nose for a few seconds, Plume remembered she was in a human dwelling and quickly darted out of sight, fearfully clapping her hands over her mouth and nose. When no one came looking for her, she peeked out from behind a vase on the windowsill and surveyed her surroundings.

An impressive four-poster bed dominated the room, and Plume could immediately tell it was occupied, further highlighting the need for silence. She fluttered down toward the floor, staying low as she approached, and she carefully dried herself off with the corner of a hanging blanket. Letting out a quiet sigh, Plume put her hands on her hips. She knew she should just squeeze through the keyhole of a dresser or drawer and find someplace to sleep inside, but curiosity got the better of her as always.

Slowly rising up beside the bed, Plume peered over the top just to make sure the human was actually asleep. Soft, gentle breathing intermingled with the pounding of the rain outside, and Plume found herself entranced long enough that she very nearly fell asleep in midair. She shook her head to keep herself awake for a moment longer, and then she gradually crept toward the human’s exposed head.

Gazing down at her unsuspecting host, Plume smiled. A human lady slept peacefully on her back, her short brown hair sprawled out every which way. Her lips were slightly parted, though she seemed to be breathing mostly through her nose with hardly any snoring at all. Rolling her eyes at herself, Plume descended toward the human’s face and perched lightly on the wide, flat tip of her nose. Even with her negligible weight, the human’s skin gave way ever so slightly under her feet. Plume allowed herself a silent giggle, carefully sitting down on the tip of the nose so as not to slip down the freckled slope toward the human’s eyes. 

Confident that her host was properly oblivious, Plume gave the side of the nose a soft pat and turned around, sliding down the broad, flat septum. The human’s nose wriggled slightly in protest, but otherwise she didn’t so much as sniff. Performatively dusting off her hands, Plume took a few steps toward the upper lip and turned around. Two long, spacious nostrils loomed before her, reaching up to nearly three times her height and curving slightly toward each other as they ascended. Air rushed in and out as the human’s chest rose and fell, lightly tugging on Plume’s hair, but it was a pleasant, calming sensation. She’d been trying to talk herself out of this ever since she noticed the human, but Plume ultimately smiled and shrugged. One more time couldn’t hurt, and it would certainly be warmer than sleeping inside a dusty drawer.

Plume approached the human’s left nostril, casually resting a hand on the edge as though it were a doorframe. Cool air flowed in from behind, and a few seconds later a wave of warmth washed over her in turn. Just past the opening of the nostril, a plethora of long, dark hairs rustled like leaves in the breeze. After one more exhale, Plume stepped inside. The interior of the nostril was pleasingly dry beneath her feet, though she continued to move carefully, avoiding contact with as many nose hairs as she could. Eventually the pixie managed to find a relatively open patch, and she curled up for a warm, comfortable slumber.

* * *

When the sun first shone through the bedroom window, the sudden light on Sophie’s face roused her from her slumber. She wrinkled her nose in discomfort and tried to turn away, but every movement further cemented the reality that she was awake, and therefore tragically no longer asleep. Sophie sat up in defeat, and she reached for her glasses on the bedside table before a twinge in her left nostril made her bring her hand back to firmly rub a finger under her nose. Allergies already? It was far too early for her to want to deal with that. 

After a good bout of rubbing back and forth, Sophie lightly flicked the tip of her nose up with the side of her finger and finally retrieved her glasses. She carefully placed the large, round lenses in front of her brown eyes, and then she unceremoniously fell back onto her pillow. As if to add insult to injury, she couldn’t even focus on moping for more than a few seconds before her tickly nose begged to be indulged once more. Clenching her eyes shut, Sophie furiously scrubbed her index finger back and forth across her nostrils, doing frustratingly little to alleviate the itch. With no other recourse, she threw her covers off of herself and hopped out of bed.

Sophie could barely take five steps toward her washroom before her nose tickled sharply enough to stop her in her tracks. She gave her nostrils another vigorous rub with her finger, though again it failed to cure her ills. Something seemed strange. This wasn’t the simple, natural tickle of dust or even the creeping itch of pollen. Instead, Sophie could have sworn she felt something squirming around somewhere inside her left nostril, playing about her nose hairs. 

Grumbling irritably, Sophie mashed her nostrils upward with the palm of her hand and stormed into her washroom. She tore a tissue from the box on the table, but before she could bring it up to her face, the tickle in her nose surged suddenly enough to make her gasp for air. Sophie threw back her head, and if she’d somehow managed to open her eyes, she just might have been able to see the cause of all her troubles in the reflection of her flaring nostrils.

_ “Aht’SHHUE!” _

Even with a tissue in her hand, Sophie failed to cover her nose. Her sneeze lightly misted the bottom of the washroom mirror, though she barely noticed as she blearily stared at her reflection above. Sophie blinked, her long nostrils widening as her breath silently hitched. Something up inside was still tickling like mad, and after another hitch, Sophie reared up to sneeze again.

_ “Ah… Hh-hah… Hhh… Hh-hhhh… Hihh! HaSHUE! Ah’t-CHUE! Ah… Aahh… Ah-Ahh-Ahhh! AAH-SHHUUE!!!” _

A trio of strong sneezes rocked Sophie’s body. This time she was able to bring her tissue up to her nose, for the final sneeze at least. She gave a breathless  _ ”gnuh…” _ as she wiped the tissue back and forth under her nostrils, and after a dejected sniff she let her hand fall away. The tickle was gone, though she still slid her index finger back and forth under her nostrils a few times just to be sure. Sophie pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose and moved to drop her tissue in the wastebasket, but before she could open her hand, she thought she saw something inside.

At first Sophie was disgusted, but she also felt an urge to discover what exactly had dared to make her sneeze so early in the morning. Bracing herself, Sophie uncrumpled her tissue and stood still as a statue when she saw what it contained. Truth be told, not very much mess at all, or at least less than she’d been expecting. What she certainly didn’t expect, however, was the damp, tiny, winged person staring back up at her. Sophie blinked rapidly in disbelief. She lifted her glasses and squinted at the tissue, then she replaced her spectacles and squinted harder.

The tiny person waved.

Sophie gasped and stumbled back, her tissue falling into the sink. Bracing herself in the doorway, Sophie straightened up and took a deep breath.

“What in the world…?” she wheezed. It was hard to be sure from this distance and on such a tiny face, but the little flying person seemed to smile.

“Wh-who are you?” Sophie asked, unsure if the tiny being would even understand, let alone reply. To her surprise, the winged person’s smile took on a somewhat guilty twinge.

“I’m… Your fairy godmother?”

Sophie blinked wordlessly, and she suddenly remembered her sneezing fit from only a moment ago. She took a step forward, jabbing a finger at her visitor with a frown.

“Hey! Were you  _ in my nose _ just now?”

The tiny person clasped her hands behind her back and sheepishly kicked a foot in the air.

“I’m sorry… I just didn’t have anywhere else to go. It was so cold and stormy last night-”

Sophie drew back, holding two fingers across her nostrils as if to protect them from further intrusion.

“You were in my nose  _ all night?” _

The tiny woman’s guilty smile vanished, replaced instead by a frustrated frown of her own.

“Hey! We pixies have it rough! We can’t exactly cut down a forest to build a big house like this! Instead we have to huddle up for warmth inside a human’s big  _ nose!” _

Sophie removed her fingers from her nostrils, petulantly shaking her fists in the air.

_ “Oh, _ you are  _ so-!” _

A sudden knock on the bedroom door startled both women half to death. Plume swallowed nervously as Sophie looked back over her shoulder at the sound.

“Princess? Are you alright in there?” called a low female voice from the other side of the door. Sophie rolled her eyes and leaned against the corners of the sink.

“Y-yes, Lady Deselle. I was just… Sneezing.”

Despite the potential gravity of the situation, Plume couldn’t help but give a tiny snort of laughter. Sophie briefly glanced back at her and scowled.

“Goodness, are your allergies playing up  _ already? _ Isn’t it rather  _ early?” _

Sophie pinched the bridge of her nose, nudging her glasses up onto her forehead.

“...Yes, Lady Deselle.”

“Do you need a tonic, Princess?”

“No, Lady Deselle. I’m fine. Thank you.”

“Well, we’re about to be late for breakfast…”

Sophie heard the doorknob start to turn, and she whirled back to the sink in a panic. She leaned in close to the pixie and whispered firmly.

“Alright, if Lady Deselle sees you, she’s going to  _ lose _ her  _ mind, _ and then we’ll  _ both _ be in for it. You need to hide-”

Plume quickly looked around, but before she could find a suitable place to conceal herself, a hot wave of air rushed over her from above. She looked up to once again find Sophie’s wide nose and its long nostrils within reach, and with no time to search for a better alternative, she beat her wings and soared upward. Plume misjudged the distance a bit and she flew straight into Sophie’s nose hairs, causing the human to snort and cough. The world shifted around her as Sophie turned away from the washroom, and looking out through the opening of the nostril, Plume could just make out the bottom of a fine green dress as Lady Deselle stepped into the bedroom.

“Goodness, Princess. I’ll have to get you a tonic after breakfast.”

Sophie shook her head, jostling Plume inside her nose, and another cough kept her from refusing before Lady Deselle had made up her mind. Hoping to get a better picture of her surroundings, the pixie crawled cautiously toward the edge of the nostril, not close enough to be seen, but just enough to have a slightly wider view. Lady Deselle seemed to be leading Sophie toward her closet, and judging by the frantic motions and grunts of protest that followed, the young lady was being forcibly changed out of her nightgown.

Although Plume had been doing her best not to agitate Sophie’s nose, the edges of the human’s nostrils began to quiver. A sudden sniff pulled at Plume’s hair, and she carefully backed away from the opening ever so slightly. However, in doing so her elbow just barely grazed one of the sensitive nose hairs, and Plume was nearly turned upside down when Sophie suddenly wrinkled her nose up tight. The nose relaxed after a few seconds, but then the inside of the nostril darkened as something partially obstructed the opening. Plume wrapped her arms around another hair and held on tight, bracing for what would surely follow.

Sophie began to rub her nose back and forth with her finger, causing her nasal passages to bend from side to side. Plume was rocked left and right, but fortunately while the motion was firm, it was also slow and rhythmic, allowing her to keep her balance. The opening of the nostril stretched upward as Sophie flicked her finger toward the tip of her nose, and with that she was finished. Plume let go of the nose hair and breathed a sigh of relief. So far, so good.

With Lady Deselle shoving Sophie into appropriate attire, Plume had no chance to escape from her host’s nose. Eventually she felt brave enough to approach the edge of the nostril again, and she watched as the Princess was led down a hallway, presumably toward the dining room. When the pleasant aroma of breakfast reached Sophie’s nostrils, naturally Plume was able to smell it too. Immediately her stomach growled. She didn’t need to eat much, and she wasn’t too familiar with a lot of human food, but it had been a long time since she’d last had a proper pixie-sized meal. Looking past Sophie’s lips below, Plume watched as the human sat down at a plate stacked with quite a lot of eggs and bacon. The bowl of fruit off to the side was what really caught her attention though, and she could barely stand to look at it.

Feeling her stomach rumble again, Plume dejectedly slunk away from the edge of the nose. The nasal passages shifted around her somewhat as Sophie began to eat, but it wasn’t too difficult for the pixie to weather, especially compared to the sneezes earlier. She found her way back to the clearing where she’d slept, and she sat down to occupy herself until the meal was over. Trying to take her mind off the food, Plume pulled her knees up to her chest and began to absently trace a circle on the ground beside her with a fingertip. Unfortunately, she didn’t realize what kind of effect she was having on Sophie until it was too late.

_ “Heh… Ehh-hehh… Hihh… Hh…” _

A series of labored breaths rushed in and out of Sophie’s lungs as she prepared to sneeze out the tickle Plume had been causing. Finally aware of what she’d done, the pixie pulled her hand away from the human’s nasal membrane, but Sophie had already passed the point of no return. More light flooded in as the opening of the nostril flared, and Plume very nearly started to slide deeper into the nose as Sophie’s head tipped back. Everything hung in silence for half a second, and then…

_ “At’SHHUE!” _

Sophie’s sneeze sent Plume tumbling head over heels, but she didn’t get far before the human’s nose hair caught her. She struggled to free herself in a panic, but kicking and flailing at the hairs around her only served to make Sophie’s nose tremble with a torturous tickle. The nasal passage darkened again - Sophie must have put her finger under her nose - but she couldn’t even begin to rub at the tickle before losing control all over again.

_ “Ah… Ah-Aah… Hh-haahh… HACHSHhjuh!” _

Sophie’s nose lurched violently, but the air around Plume hardly seemed to move as the human stifled her sneeze. Unfortunately this meant she was still trapped in Sophie’s nose hair, and now, everything was  _ dark _ . For a moment Plume was frightened, but by now she had realized she couldn’t simply thrash her way out. The pixie took a deep breath, trying to think of a calmer solution. Her patience was rewarded as Sophie removed her fingers from under her nose, allowing light to flood in through the nostril once more. Unfortunately, it didn’t last long before something covered the opening yet again, and this time it didn’t seem to be Sophie’s doing.

“Lady Deselle, please! At least let me finish eating!”

The sound of an almost disappointed sigh reached Plume’s ears, and after a second the light returned again.

“Very well, Princess. As you wish.”

Plume frowned intensely, feeling a pang of sympathy for Sophie. She’d met plenty of disagreeable humans in the past, but this Lady Deselle couldn’t possibly have been more overbearing. Not wanting to risk having someone else handle Sophie’s nose, the pixie decided to lay low until they could have another moment alone. Fortunately for her, Sophie was either a quick eater or she didn’t finish the entire plate, as only a few minutes later, she stood up from the table and began to make her way back to her bedroom. Plume wasn’t sure if Lady Deselle was still with her, not that she could escape now if she wanted to, so she continued to bide her time.

Another set of footsteps out of sync with Sophie’s movements made Plume’s heart sink. Just how far was this Deselle going to follow her. The pixie was almost thrown free of the nose hair when Sophie suddenly turned to look behind her, and Plume could feel her give an exasperated sigh.

“Lady Deselle, I told you I’m  _ fine.” _

“Princess, you  _ must _ take a tonic before your portrait.”

“But-”

_ “No. _ Mister Aurame is too expensive for you to literally  _ sneeze _ away his time!”

After a brief pause, Sophie took a few stomping steps.

_ “Fine. _ But I can take it myself. And I’d  _ greatly _ appreciate it if you didn’t stand here and stare at me while I do.”

“Very well. But I’ll be back to check on you in a few minutes, and you had best be taking that tonic.”

Sophie sighed again.

“Yes, Lady Deselle.”

“Thank you, Princess.”

The bedroom door opened and closed, and the instant it was shut, Plume felt Sophie walking off to somewhere else. Craning her head backward, she tried to look out through the sliver of Sophie’s nostril she could see, and she recognized a bit of the mirror from the washroom.

“Hey, pixie? You still there?” Sophie suddenly asked in a hushed voice. Plume was a bit startled, but she smiled.

“Yes, I’m here. I’m a little stuck.”

“Oh. Sorry about that…”

“It’s okay. I think we got off on the wrong foot. You’re… a princess?”

Sophie chuckled softly.

“Yeah. My name’s Sophie Hillford, Sixth Princess of the Ivontis Empire. Though with all my brothers and cousins, I’m something like… I don’t know,  _ thirty-first _ in line for the throne?”

“Oh my. How many siblings do you have?”

“It’s… A long story. Let’s just say ‘a lot.’ What’s your name?”

“I’m Plume. Just Plume. Nice to meet you, Sophie- Er, Princess. Sorry.”

Sophie gave another quiet laugh, simultaneously bringing a finger up to rub under her nose.

“Sophie’s fine. I’m tired of all the formality, to tell the truth. Oh! Did you say you were  _ stuck?” _

Plume sighed with a calm smile.

“I am. I’m… A bit tangled up in your nose hair.”

“Oh…” Sophie mumbled, sounding embarrassed. “S-sorry. My retainer will be back in a few minutes, but we might be able to get you out before then.”

Sophie leaned toward the mirror and slid a finger under the tip of her nose. She then lifted gently, revealing her nostrils and allowing her to peer inside. Sure enough, she could see Plume tangled up in a mess of nose hair in her left nostril. Sophie winced, biting her lip.

“I… Don’t really know how to help you,” she said, lifting the tip of her nose a bit higher and trying to take a closer look. “Any ideas?”

Plume pursed her lips.

“Well, I think you might have been able to sneeze me out before, but you held it in.”

Sophie swallowed.

“Do you… Think I should sneeze again?”

Plume nodded.

“Is… Is that alright?”

Sophie released the tip of her nose, allowing it to fall back into place. She closed her eyes and sighed, and then she stared down the freckly bridge of her nose as if she’d be able to see Plume somehow.

“I can try... But despite what Lady Deselle seems to think, I can’t just sneeze because I  _ want _ to.”

“Well, what makes you sneeze?” asked Plume. “I might be able to help, but I can really only wiggle around.”

She demonstrated, kicking at some of the nose hairs near her feet. Sophie immediately scrunched up her nose in protest.

“Stop it! That tickles!” she whined reflexively, rubbing her index finger back and forth under her nostrils. “But I don’t think it’ll make me sneeze again… I’m… Feathers make me sneeze, so much that Lady Deselle makes all the housekeepers stay far away from me when they clean. Though she wouldn’t let me have even one feather in here if I  _ wanted _ one…”

Suddenly, Sophie’s ears perked up as she heard the all too familiar sound of footsteps approaching from the hall. She glared at her bedroom door, and then she apologetically looked down her nose to speak to Plume again.

“Plume, I’m  _ really _ sorry, but… My retainer’s about to get back, and she’ll throw a fit if I don’t take this tonic for my allergies. I  _ promise _ I’ll get you out as soon as she’s gone, but for now, I  _ really _ need you to stay still. I… I’m  _ really _ sorry.”

Plume smiled, bittersweet but sympathetic.

“It’s okay, Sophie. It’s not your fault.”

_ “Sorry!” _

Biting her lip again, Sophie stared down at the bottle in her hand, full of a thick pink liquid. She gave it a vigorous shake, unscrewed the lid, and then she held the open top against the underside of her nose. Bubbles and fumes began to rise into her nostrils, supposedly meant to prevent sneezing, but Sophie knew all too well how useless these allergy tonics really were. Taking them was simply a platitude for Lady Deselle. To make matters worse, most of the bubbles only tickled her septum without ever entering her nostrils.

The bubbles that  _ did _ manage to find their way inside, however, were giving Plume quite a show. The transparent pink spheres danced all about, some popping against nose hairs and nasal membranes, while others drifted off deep inside Sophie’s nostrils and disappeared from view. Despite her surreal situation, Plume found it rather pretty to watch.

“Are you feeling any better, Princess?” Plume heard Lady Deselle’s voice filter in from the outside.

“Yes, ma’am,” Sophie replied, her voice sounding a bit nasal.

“Wonderful. Now, any final changes to your outfit for the portrait?”

Sophie sighed, sending a wave of bubbles back into the bottle.

“If I still can’t wear my dueling doublet, then I suppose not.”

Plume continued to gaze up at the far reaches of Sophie’s nostril, though as time passed, her wings started to feel a bit cramped. Wait a minute… Her wings! Plume beamed excitedly, squirming to one side just enough that she could give her dragonfly-like wings a light flutter. She immediately felt better, and after stretching her shoulders to loosen up further, she took a second to beat her wings to her heart’s content.

Sophie tensed, her eyelids drooping and her lips parting as she felt a sharp tickle in her left nostril. She could only hope that meant Plume had managed to free herself, and that there wouldn’t be any further tickling. To make matters worse, Lady Deselle immediately noticed her change in expression.

“Are you feeling alright, Princess?”

Sophie quickly glanced away and nodded, clearing her throat to buy half a second.

“Yes, um… The tonic is tickling my nose.”

Lady Deselle smiled, and Sophie sensed an air of suspicion behind it. She wasn’t sure what her retainer could reasonably think she might be guilty of this time, but for better or worse, Deselle didn’t say another word. Sophie desperately wished she could look at the bottle to see how much of the tonic was left, but it was, quite literally, right under her nose. She sniffed quietly, hoping it might help the process along, but the sudden rush of air mostly served only to jostle Plume, and even worse, cause her wings to flutter again.

_ “Hh-hih…” _ Sophie breathed, feeling the tickle in her nose. Her nostrils flared over the tonic bottle, and she fought hard to keep her eyelids from drooping. Miraculously Lady Deselle didn’t seem to notice this time. Wanting nothing more than to furiously rub her nose, Sophie could only scrunch up her face, turning slightly away from her retainer so that she might remain oblivious. The tickling in her nose continued, though it gradually began to die down and she managed to ignore it. 

Eventually Sophie no longer felt the tonic bubbles popping around her septum, and after showing the bottle to Lady Deselle, her retainer gave an approving nod and she was finally able to free her nostrils. Placing the bottle haphazardly on the windowsill, Sophie immediately clenched her eyes shut and rubbed hard back and forth under her wide nose. Lady Deselle managed a sympathetic smile, though it quickly turned to a mild frown when Sophie’s nostrils began to produce a squelching sound in protest.

“Princess…”

“Ugh, you  _ know _ those tonics tickle my nose!” Sophie complained. She continued to rub for a moment more, and then she lightly threw back her head with a long, deep sniff, strong enough to momentarily thin her nostrils.

“Well, I hope you can sort this out soon. This kind of behavior will be absolutely unacceptable come your portrait session.”

Sophie frowned and glared, pressing her nostrils upward with the palm of her hand.

“Yes ma’am.”

Lady Deselle turned away without a word, only glancing back at Sophie after she stepped through the door.

“I’ll send your handmaidens to dress you and apply your makeup.”

The door closed, and Plume beamed with excitement. Now that she and Sophie were alone in the room, she energetically beat her wings, hoping to draw out a good sneeze. The human gasped and threw back her head, and then the inside of the nose suddenly went pitch-black as Sophie squeezed her nostrils between her thumb and forefinger.

“P-Plume,  _ no!” _ Sophie whispered hoarsely. “Sh-she’ll he _ ehh… _ She’ll  _ heh! _ Sh-she’ll hear me!  _ Hihh… Hhh…” _

The pixie’s eyes went wide with fear. She hadn’t known Lady Deselle for long, but already she wouldn’t be surprised if the retainer was still lurking just outside the door, listening for anything out of the ordinary. And even if she wasn’t, Sophie’s sneezes could be quite strong.

“Sophie, I’m sorry!” pleaded Plume, also keeping her voice down. “I forgot!”

After another sniff, the nasal passage began to shake left and right again as Sophie firmly rubbed her nose with an outstretched finger. Not sure what else to do, Plume nodded in encouragement.

“That’s it, good girl. Hold it in.”

_ “Hih… Hh-hhh… Hehh… I c-can’t… Hihh! I-I’m gonna…” _

Sophie began to stumble toward the washroom. With any luck, another set of doors and a tissue to sneeze into would be enough to muffle the sound. The box was almost within reach, but a ticklish surge brought her to a halt. She threw back her head with a shrill gasp, but she managed to stop herself just in time.

_ “Hhheeeh!” _

“Sophie, don’t sneeze!” cried Plume. Her first impulse was to resume thrashing about in a final attempt to free herself, but she tried her best to remain as still as possible. Sophie let out a long held breath that  _ almost _ sounded relaxed, but it barely escaped her lips before she began hitching all over again.

_ “Hih… Hh… Hhh… Oh god… Hh-hh! Hhh!” _

_ “Sophie!” _

_ “I heh… I-I hihh… I hafta… Hih! I’m g-gonna…!” _

Sophie froze at the height of her buildup, her face locked in ticklish agony. Her nostrils, normally long and narrow, were flared wide to twice their usual size. One hand reached for the tissue box, fingers trembling toward the soft paper. Somehow through sheer force of will, Sophie managed to grab a tissue and pull it free. The instant it was in her hand, she clapped it to her nostrils, squashing the underside of her nose upward and knocking her glasses askew. Knowing this was the best she could do, Sophie let go.

_ “AAA _ **_AASHHHUUUE!!!”_ **

The princess doubled over with a big sneeze, nearly colliding with her washroom sink. It was more than powerful enough to fling Plume free from the nose hairs, sending her tumbling through Sophie’s nose and into the waiting tissue. Everything around the pixie trembled: there were still more sneezes yet to come. Taking advantage of the few seconds she had while Sophie’s breath hitched, Plume climbed up the tissue and squeezed her way out past the edge of the nose, and finally she laid down to rest on top.

_ “Ah… Hhh… Ah-Ahh-Ahhh! HA-SHHUE!” _

Sophie sneezed again, lurching forward. Fortunately Plume managed to remain safely on top of her nose, barely needing to dig her fingers into the soft skin. Finally seeing her host sneeze from the outside, Plume could only watch in awe, staring up the bridge of Sophie’s nose as it crinkled, her freckles melding together. The nostrils below sucked in air once again, and then they helplessly let loose into the failing tissue with a powerful  _ “AATCHSHH!” _

Finally, Sophie took one more deep breath, this time through her mouth, and she thoroughly blew her nose into the depleted tissue. To Plume it felt like nothing but a massive roar, the force shaking her to the bone, but after a moment, it was all over. The pixie swayed back and forth as Sophie tenderly wiped the underside of her nose with the tissue, and then the human’s big brown eyes fluttered open. They blinked a few more times, and then they lowered to meet Plume.

“Bless you, Sophie,” said the pixie, smiling up at the princess’s eyes. Though she couldn’t see Sophie’s mouth, she could tell the human was smiling back

“Sorry, Plume.”

“It’s alright. I’m okay. Are… Are  _ you _ okay? Those were some  _ big _ sneezes!”

After taking a moment to catch her breath, Plume beat her wings and took off from Sophie’s nose, hovering a safe distance from her face.

“I’m fine, thank you,” replied the human, fixing her slipped glasses. She then scrunched up her face and firmly rubbed a finger under her nose, earning another sympathetic smile from Plume. The pixie cautiously flew forward and placed a hand on the tip of Sophie’s nose, letting it slide back and forth under her palm as the princess continued rubbing. Then, purely out of habit, Sophie threw back her head and sniffed hard. The suction nearly pulled Plume right back up her nose, but the pixie managed to escape.

“Ah! Sophie!” she gasped, starting to laugh.

“Oh! Sorry!” Sophie replied, smiling awkwardly. To avoid any further risk of being sniffed up again, Plume returned to the tip of Sophie’s nose and sat down.

“Ugh, I need a nap,” said the pixie, stretching her arms up toward the ceiling. Sophie smiled.

“Me too. Sneezing’s  _ exhausting.” _


	2. Chapter 2

Sophie and Plume took a moment to rest and relax. The pixie remained curled up on top of Sophie’s nose, and the audible rush of air through the nostrils below was actually rather soothing. She knew she didn’t have time for a nap, but she closed her eyes and took a deep breath of her own. Then, Sophie’s nose suddenly twitched. Plume lifted her head, opening her eyes in time to watch the freckled bridge of Sophie’s nose crinkle up, simultaneous with the sound of a loud sniff from underneath.

“Sophie?” Plume asked with a hint of worry.

The princess’s eyes fluttered and her nose wrinkled again, then she managed to look down at the pixie.

“Sorry. I think I… I need to blow my nose again, sorry. Could you…?”

Plume smiled, fluttering her wings.

“Of course.”

The pixie took off from Sophie’s nose and backed away. After grabbing a fresh tissue, Sophie tenderly held it under her nostrils and took a deep breath through her mouth. Then, she loudly blew her nose, putting in so much effort that she bent forward slightly at the waist.

_ “Guh…” _ Sophie groaned when she finished, repositioning her hands. She used her index fingers to wipe the tissue up and down the edges of her long nostrils, cleaning up anything that might not have been fully expelled. Then, she crumpled the tissue and held it gently to the underside of her nose, giving another quiet  _ “ugh…” _

“Are you okay, Sophie?” Plume asked, absently holding out a hand. Sophie nodded, sniffing and pressing her nose up with the tissue.

“It’s just… You’re not in my nose anymore, but it still tickles. I think my allergies are actually starting to act up.”

Plume frowned sympathetically, floating a bit closer.

“What are you allergic to, besides feathers?”

Sophie sighed, gently wiping her nose with the tissue and finally throwing it away.

“A lot of things, actually. Hay and ragweed. Even trees and grass…”

“Oh, that  _ is _ a lot of things. Flowers?”

Sophie smiled, starting to step back out of the washroom.

“A couple, but most of them are okay. It’s basically everything  _ else _ about the outdoors that makes me sneeze. As if the world just wants me to stay inside.”

“I’m sorry, Sophie,” cooed Plume, starting to follow along behind the human. The princess shrugged and sighed.

“Thanks, Plume. Anyway, before my handmaidens get here… I grabbed a slice of pound cake after breakfast, and I thought you might be hungry.”

Sophie gestured to a small plate on the windowsill, and Plume’s face lit up. She immediately darted over to the cake, grabbed as much of it as she could hold in her hands, and then she turned to her host with an embarrassed smile.

“Are you sure it’s okay?” she asked. Sophie gave a snort of laughter.

“Definitely. Eat the whole thing if you want.”

Plume so desperately wished she could. At her tiny size she could practically only eat it one crumb at a time, but fortunately that was all she needed to satisfy her hunger. As far as Sophie could tell, hardly any of the slice was gone. Fascinated by her little guest, she knelt down beside the windowsill to watch the pixie eat, but only a few seconds later, a knock came at the door.

“Princess?” called another feminine voice, this one distinct from Lady Deselle’s. Sophie looked over her shoulder and then back to Plume.

_ “Hide!” _ she whispered firmly, and before she knew it, she felt Plume fly straight into her right nostril. Sophie gave a snort and wrinkled her nose.

_ “Plume!” _ she coughed, rubbing a finger under her nostrils. Inside the princess’s nose, the pixie smiled sheepishly.

_ “Sorry! I panicked!” _

Sophie rolled her eyes and sighed, but she knew there was no time to come up with a better plan.

_ “It’s okay. Just don’t tickle me!” _

Plume bit her lip, not sure if she could make that promise. She laid down on her stomach and peered out of Sophie’s nostril. Mostly she could only see an upper lip below her and the floor far past it, but the princess’s nose turned up just enough that she could see the bottom of the far bedroom wall.

“Yes, sorry,” Sophie finally replied to her visitor. “You may come in.”

The door opened, and two pairs of shiny black shoes stepped through, followed by Lady Deselle’s green dress. Sophie was led over to her closet just as she had been before breakfast, and again she was changed into a different outfit. From what Plume could see, Sophie was being undressed by the other two people in the room this time, and Lady Deselle herself hadn’t said a word. 

At first the pixie backed away from the opening of the nostril to give Sophie some privacy, but eventually curiosity got the better of her and she crept forward again. Looking down past Sophie’s lips, Plume could see elements of a big, pearl white dress. She gasped in surprise as Sophie suddenly lurched and gave an agitated  _ “hmp!” _ Plume wasn’t entirely sure what had happened, but she could just hear the sounds of laces being pulled and tied.

Dressing Sophie up took much longer than it had in the morning. Plume had seen countless different human outfits before, but she had no idea they were so difficult to put on. Eventually the process finally ended, and the princess’s attendants sat her down in a chair in the center of the room. One of them stepped in front of her, and Plume just caught a glimpse of Sophie’s glasses as they were removed and placed on the table by her bed.

For the next few minutes, Plume wasn’t entirely sure what was happening. One of the handmaidens continued to stand in front of Sophie, but she couldn’t see or hear much of anything. Occasionally she spotted the attendant’s hands, holding brushes and containers of various sorts. They reminded Plume a bit of paint, at least what she’d seen of it. At one point Sophie coughed suddenly, giving the pixie a shake, but she managed to keep herself still and quiet. Then, Plume heard something she didn’t expect.

“Time for your nose, Princess. I know you’re sensitive,” said another voice, not Lady Deselle’s. This one sounded softer and more friendly, and Plume liked the accent.  _ ‘SensiTEEv.’ _ She smiled, imagining her pronouncing the princess’s name more like ‘so _ FEE.’ _ Meanwhile, Sophie herself still seemed tense.

“Okay…” the princess replied, and Plume could hear a touch of embarrassment in her voice. She gave the ground beside her a reassuring  _ pat pat, _ and then she nearly screamed as a set of brush bristles licked upward through the opening of the nostril.

Plume darted backward with a gasp, and even before she touched down again, everything around her began to shift and contort. The nasal membranes above her ruffled and scrunched, and the edges of Sophie’s nostril stretched outward, almost doubling the entrance’s width. Worst of all, cream-colored powder sprayed into the air, flung from the brush as the bristles snapped away. Sophie and Plume  _ both _ coughed, though fortunately the sound of the pixie’s discomfort was easily drowned out.

The cloud of powder lingered in the air, obscuring Plume’s vision like a thick fog. She coughed again and covered her mouth, trying to back away from the edge of the nostril without tickling Sophie. Something lightly thumped against the outside of the nose above her, causing her to gasp in shock and accidentally inhale more powder. The pixie doubled over with a more violent coughing fit, and in a panic she fluttered her wings in an attempt to clear the air.

Plume’s wings buzzed against Sophie’s nose hairs, but she was still too busy coughing to notice. The human’s nostrils flared, and again the walls all around Plume began to tremble.

_ “Eh… Hihh… Noele, I… Hhh-!” _

“I’m almost finished, Princess. Please try not to sneeze.”

_ “Hih… I-I’ll try… Hh-hhh… It tihh… It tickles…” _

In an attempt to avoid torturing Sophie further, Plume held her wings still and coughed into her cupped hands. Much of the powder in the air had already settled, but another pass of the brush brought a swift end to the momentary calm. At the first sign of the bristles reaching into Sophie’s nostril, Plume immediately turned away and held her breath. Loose powder surrounded her once again, and she resisted the urge to flutter her wings. Keeping one hand over her mouth and nose, the pixie waved her other arm back and forth in front of her face. She retreated farther away from the edge of the nostril, carefully avoiding as many nose hairs as she could, and finally the brush began to withdraw.

Plume sighed with relief, letting her hand fall away from her face. Unfortunately, doing so allowed her to accidentally inhale her  _ own _ noseful of powder. The pixie squirmed, giving a single cough as she frantically fanned her face with both hands, and then…

_ “Ha… Haa… Hi’KSHII!” _

Her sneeze was barely a squeak by human standards, but relative to Plume’s tiny size, it was incredibly strong. So much so that combined with all the shock and confusion, she stumbled back and fell right into Sophie’s nose hairs. Fortunately Plume could tell she hadn’t gotten stuck this time, but poor Sophie was at her limit. The tickle hit her so suddenly that she threw back her head and gasped for breath, sending Plume tumbling deeper into her nostril. For better or worse, Plume didn’t have much time to fall before Sophie doubled over with a strong  _ “AATCHHUUE!” _

The pixie rolled right back the way she came, but she managed to grab a nose hair to keep from sliding any further. She pulled herself up and held on tight, sure there would be more chaos momentarily. Sophie’s nose quivered and trembled all around her, the hairs jerking back and forth with each hitching breath. The opening of the nostril expanded and contracted arhythmically, and as it suddenly flared to its maximum size, Plume closed her eyes and braced herself.

_ “Eh… Hihh… Hh-heh… Tih… T-tickles! Hh-hhh! HaaSHHUE!! Ah… Hehh… Hhh…” _

Plume continued to hold on as Sophie hitched toward another sneeze, and suddenly everything went dark. Sophie held two fingers firmly against the underside of her nose, blocking off her nostrils. She wasn’t entirely sure what would happen, but the last thing she wanted to do was send Plume sailing out of her nostril with this many people around. Her nose crumpled upward on top of her fingers, but the need to sneeze persisted.

_ “Heh… Hh… Hih! AhCHSsk! Hh-heh! Heh-CHSSsguh…” _

After firmly stifling two sneezes, Sophie gave a sigh of relief. She seemed to be done, at least for now. Her fingers fell away from her nose and she sniffed twice, one soft and quick, the other strong and drawn out. Blearily opening her eyes, Sophie first stole a glance at Lady Deselle, and then she turned back to her handmaiden.

“Sorry, Noele…” she mumbled, blushing subtly. The attendant smiled and shook her head.

“À tes souhaits, Princess. We’re all finished. But, please do not touch your nose anymore.”

Plume let out a sigh of her own as Sophie gently nodded back, and then she held on tight to her nose hair as the princess desperately wriggled her nostrils. She supposed Sophie deserved at least that much, especially if she couldn’t give her nose a good rub like she seemed to enjoy.

“Alright… I’m ready,” said Sophie, standing up from the chair. Noele returned her glasses, and then the princess was led out of her room and down the hall. Eventually Sophie passed through a large wooden door, and once they were on the other side, Plume could again hear the ambiance of nature she was accustomed to. The sounds of Sophie’s footsteps changed from wood, to stone, and then to the crunch of gravel that Plume had only heard a handful of times before. Everything seemed so peaceful, but then Sophie suddenly sniffed. It was quick, but still sharp enough to thin her nostrils and tug on Plume’s hair. The pixie glanced around herself, making sure she wasn’t tickling the nose by accident, but she couldn’t figure out what the problem was. When she looked up, however, she remembered what the princess had told her earlier.

_ Allergies. _

Little clumps of yellow floated into Sophie’s nose, drifting lazily toward the depths of her nostrils. One such intruder passed close enough to Plume that she managed to swat it away, but most of them were too far for her to reach without flying, and fluttering her wings would likely bring out a sneeze even faster. The pixie knew there wasn’t much she could do, especially since Sophie’s left nostril was completely undefended, but she still wanted to help her new friend however she was able. And so, Plume began to patrol the nostril, gathering up all the pollen she could reach.

Unfortunately by the time Plume could hurl even one armful of grains out of the nose, she realized she was only delaying the inevitable. The ground felt extra squishy beneath her feet, and she could see layers of wetness starting to collect on the walls all around her. Something damp trickled down a nose hair high above and dripped, splashing just beside Plume. She yelped in surprise and hopped away, her sudden footfalls causing a twinge in Sophie’s nose. The nasal passage squelched to the left as she scrunched up her face, and then another sniff momentarily thinned her nostrils. Fortunately Sophie didn’t sneeze, but both she and Plume knew it was only a matter of time.

“Good day, Mister Aurame,” came Lady Deselle’s voice. “I present Princess Sophie Hillford.”

“Greetings, Princess. It is an honor to meet you,” a masculine voice replied with an accent similar to Noele’s. Plume felt Sophie bow her head slightly.

“It’s, uh…” Sophie paused nervously, sniffing and wiggling her nose again. “A pleasure to meet you too.”

“Are you ready to begin? Please have a seat.”

Sophie stepped around a series of large flower arrangements and positioned herself in a large wicker chair. Watching through the opening of the nostril, Plume saw her start to raise a gloved finger up to her nostrils for a rub, but she paused and lowered her hand. The pixie frowned sympathetically, wishing there was more she could do to help. Despite her best efforts, the congestion inside Sophie’s nose was only getting worse, and Plume could only handle so much pollen.

“Sit how you are most comfortable,” Aurame continued. “Please choose a pose you can hold until we are finished, however.”

The princess nodded, helplessly sniffing again as she tried to relax. Plume stumbled as Sophie wiggled her nose, nearly falling on the slick surface. Fortunately she managed to remain upright, and the next few minutes passed in relative silence. For a while, the only things Plume could hear were the outside breeze and some chirping birds, as well as Sophie’s breathing and occasional sniffing. The pixie froze when she felt Sophie tremble, and then she heard the ominous sound of hitching breaths.

_ “Hhh… Hih…” _

Plume quickly skipped over to the inside of Sophie’s septum. She gently laid a hand against it, not sure if it would help or hinder to give it a gentle rub.

“Sophie, Sophie, it’s okay,” whispered the pixie, unsure if her friend could even hear her. “You’re not going to sneeze.”

_ “Hh-hh… Heh…” _

“Sophie,  _ shhhh. _ You’re  _ not _ going to sneeze.”

To Plume’s delight, Sophie actually nodded, if only subtly. She smiled and lightly patted the princess’s septum before stepping away to continue collecting pollen.

“That’s it. Good girl.”

Sophie gave another slight nod and allowed herself a single sniff. Plume frowned sympathetically as she returned to her work. This must have been so hard for Sophie. She could only imagine how badly the princess would need to sneeze once the portrait was finished. Plume had watched a few humans paint before, and she knew how long it could take.

As Plume carried another batch of pollen toward the edge of Sophie’s nostril, one foot slid out from under her. She tried to steady herself, but she only ended up falling forward rather than backward. The pollen grains spilled out of her arms, some sticking to Sophie’s gradually building stuffiness while others rolled into her nose hairs. Grimacing in horror, Plume held the sides of her head and let out a silent scream before jumping up to retrieve as much of the pollen as she could. Try as she might, she already knew it was too late.

_ “Ehh… Hhh… Hihh… Hh!” _

_ “Sophie, I’m sorry!” _ whined Plume, holding on to a nose hair for stability. More and more wetness dripped down from above as Sophie struggled not to sneeze, but the tickle was just too much for her to bear. She’d already needed to sneeze for what felt like an eternity, and she had passed the point of no return. Even still, the princess fought against the urge to rub or stifle her nose. Hopefully sneezing openly wouldn’t be as detrimental to her makeup.

_ “Hhh… Hh-hih… Heh! H-heh! Ah! ATSHHUE!!” _

Sophie doubled over with a strong sneeze, expelling much of the mucus from her nostrils in a fine spray. Plume managed to hold on, and fortunately much of the pollen seemed to have been carried out as well, though plenty of it still remained.

“Bless you, Princess,” offered Mister Aurame, sounding much more agreeable about the situation than Lady Deselle had implied. Sophie shook her head lightly and sniffed, still refusing to rub her nose.

“I’m sorry. Excuse me.”

Overcome with relief, Plume simply laid down on her back and breathed deep. A grain of pollen rolled past her, heading deeper into Sophie’s nose. The pixie glared at it, and just before it was out of reach, she grabbed it, stood up, and hurled the pollen back out of the nostril with both hands.

“Stop making Sophie  _ sneeze!” _ she bellowed, thrusting her fists down toward the ground. Her eyes widened and she clapped a hand over her mouth, realizing that someone else might have been close enough to hear, and then the inside of the nose trembled softly as she heard Sophie give a soft giggle. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad.

Sophie managed to hold out for quite a while without sneezing again. She was sniffing and wiggling her nose fairly regularly, but she remained sneeze-free. Plume also took a moment to rest. There seemed to be less pollen drifting into the nostril, and Sophie’s nose hairs were doing a good job of trapping it. However, despite Sophie’s habitual sniffling, a lot of wetness continued to collect at the top of her nose. 

A rather large droplet dangled precariously from one of the princess’s nose hairs, and with the force of a poorly-timed sniff, it began to plummet. It splashed down not too far from Plume, but a startled yip from the pixie was the least of Sophie’s worries. Feeling the moisture trickling toward the edge of her nostril, Sophie couldn’t help but wrinkle her nose and sniff hard. Her nostrils thinned, and the suction sent dozens of pollen grains tumbling free from her nose hairs. By the time Plume could stop bracing herself against the wind, far too much of the pollen had already escaped.

“Oh, Sophie…” the pixie cooed. She’d lost track of time, maybe the portrait was almost finished. Even if it was, however, Plume knew the princess would need a great deal of luck.

_ “Hhh… Hihh… Oh god…” _

“Princess?” Plume recognized Aurame’s voice amidst the shuddering of Sophie’s hitching breaths. For better or worse, he sounded more concerned than annoyed.

_ “I… Hih! Hh… I’m… Hhh! I’m gonna… I’m gonna sneeze!” _

Plume held on tight to a nose hair, more than familiar with the proper sneeze procedure by now. After stuttering at the height of her buildup for a split second, Sophie thrust forward with a powerful  _ “AASHHHUE!!” _

“Bless you, Princess,” Aurame said, tersely but politely. “Are you alright?”

“I…  _ Hih… _ I  _ hh _ ave… A _ aahllergies!” _

“Maybe we can get rid of some of these flowers, yes?”

Sophie shook her head, fighting the urge to jam a finger under her tickly nostrils.

_ “Ihh-it’s not the flowers… Hih! It’s the grehh… Hh-hih! It’s the grass! ATSHUUE!” _

“Well, we can’t exactly get rid of the grass,” Aurame continued. “We could move someplace indoors?”

Sophie nodded, but Plume heard the long-dreaded voice of Lady Deselle step in.

“Every royal portrait in the villa has been taken in this very garden. I shan’t encourage the Princess’s attempts to cultivate a reputation as a  _ deviant.” _

Plume scowled, holding on tight as Sophie gave another helpless  _ “Aht-CHHUE!” _ The pixie had wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt and assume her strict attitude was just some kind of misplaced love for Sophie, but this was taking things too far.

“Princess, you must stop sneezing so we might continue,” Deselle added. At least she didn’t sound  _ quite _ as angry. Sophie could barely respond. Her nostrils quivered, and she finally gave in to her impulses and firmly pressed two gloved fingers to the underside of her nose.

_ “Aah… Hhh-hah… HA-CHSSsk!!” _

Sophie stifled her sneeze, but a bit of mess still managed to escape around the edges of her nose, spattering her glove. Since the princess was already sneezing uncontrollably, Plume bit her lip and fluttered up to the higher reaches of the nose to escape the deluge of wetness below. She hung from one of the thicker hairs, bringing her wings to a stop once she had a firm grip.

“I have an idea,” Aurame spoke up, though it took Plume a moment to figure out what he’d said. “I have finished painting the Princess, and now I need only to finish the environment. The Princess does not need to stay. Come, look.”

Lady Deselle walked around behind the artist, and Sophie practically sneezed herself out of her chair with a firm, stifled  _ “AtCHSSshuh...” _ Still bathed in darkness, Plume held on as the princess also moved to take a look. A bit of light flooded into the nose as Sophie retracted one finger and used the other to rub slowly but firmly underneath. Curiosity getting the better of her, Plume dropped down and approached the edge of the nostril. Eventually Sophie’s rubbing finger slid away, and the pixie managed to catch a glimpse of her friend’s portrait. As Aurame had said, much of the background elements were barely outlined, but Sophie herself appeared almost mirror-accurate. She sat with her hands calmly clasped in her lap, staring just past the viewer. Her expression was strong and determined, but Plume also noticed a hint of sorrow. Still, the pixie smiled, almost proud of how it had turned out.

“I suppose that will have to do,” Lady Deselle said with a heavy sigh. Sophie nodded beside her.

“I think… I think it looks…  _ L-looks… Hih!” _

The portrait whipped out of view as Sophie abruptly turned away and doubled over with a desperate  _ “AATSHHHUUE!!!” _

“Bless you, Princess,” Aurame said for what felt like the hundredth time. “Thank you for being a wonderful subject.”

Sophie nodded, managing a weak chuckle.

“Th-thank you, Mister…  _ Ah… Aahhh… Hhh! Eht’SCHHUE!” _

Lady Deselle led Sophie back to the villa, and once they were inside, the princess finally managed to get her sneezing under control. Looking through Sophie’s nostril, Plume could see almost up to Lady Deselle’s waist, and she spotted the retainer produce a black handkerchief, flicking it once in her hand. Plume backed away as the handkerchief rapidly approached, and she was plunged into darkness once again as it wrapped around the base of Sophie’s nose.

“Here, Princess,” said Lady Deselle, hiding a touch of disappointment. Sophie nodded weakly, but inside her nose, Plume put on a mischievous smile. Her wings buzzed rapidly for an instant, and she began to produce all the pixie dust she could muster. The dust illuminated the inside of Sophie’s nostril with a dull golden glow as it scattered in the air around Plume, and she collected a sizable pile in her cupped hands.

“Alright, Sophie!  _ Here we go!” _

Plume blew sharply through her lips, scattering the pixie dust from her hands. The glowing powder showered Sophie’s nasal passage, finding its way into every nook and cranny. Before the chaos could begin, Plume smirked and flew back up to the top of the nose, grabbing on tight to the same hair she’d found before. At first nothing seemed to happen, but after just a few seconds, Sophie’s nose began to wriggle and tremble.

_ “Aahh… Hhh-hah… Hh… Hhhh! Hih! Hihh! Heh!” _

Shadows danced all around Plume as Sophie’s nasal passages ruffled and wrinkled. Nose hairs swayed to and fro, flinging more pixie dust about. The princess’s breath caught briefly, and then she gave one last shrill, desperate gasp for air.

_ “AaaaAA _ **_ASHHHUUUUE!!!!!”_ **

Plume was barely able to hold on as everything that had built up inside Sophie’s nose surged out of her nostrils. Lady Deselle’s handkerchief managed to contain it, but only just  _ barely _ . The princess weakly opened her eyes, and she stole a moment to lightly wipe the underside of her nose on the handkerchief before her retainer drew back her hand.

_ “Excuse _ you, Princess,” Lady Deselle grumbled. Sophie sniffed thickly, bringing an outstretched index finger up to rub hard under her nose.

“Sorry.”

With the portrait finally over and done with, Sophie finally had a moment for herself. Well, herself and Plume. Once Lady Deselle left her be, she practically sprinted to her washroom and immediately began to fill the tub. The princess carelessly shed her dress on the floor of her bedroom, and by the time she managed to get out of it, her bath was almost ready. She took off her glasses, slipped herself under the water, and rested her head on the edge of the tub.

“Alright, Plume. It’s safe to come out,” said Sophie, closing her eyes. She scrunched up her face as she felt a light rustling in her nose hair, and then the irritation quickly vanished as Plume exited the princess’s right nostril. The pixie fluttered over to the sink and immediately plopped down, her head and arms dangling over the edge.

_ “Whew!” _ sighed Plume. “We’ve had… Quite a day…”

Looking down at Sophie, Plume was happy to see her smile.

“I know. But now, we can just relax. Do you… Can you go in the water? You’re welcome to join me.”

Plume smiled and shook her head.

“Pixies  _ do _ take baths, but I think that’s a bit  _ too _ much water.”

“Well, feel free to get comfy wherever you like.”

Giggling to herself, Plume eventually took off from the sink and descended toward Sophie’s face. Stretching out her arms and legs, she gently laid down on the wide tip of the princess’s nose. Clearly feeling Plume’s presence, Sophie’s eyes fluttered open and crossed to look down at the pixie. Plume waved and shrugged.

“I like it here,” she laughed. “It’s nice and soft.”

Sophie closed her eyes again and smiled.

“Well, I’m glad  _ someone _ likes my nose.”

“You don’t?” Plume asked with a hint of concern. Sophie shrugged, water lapping over her shoulders.

“I think it’s too big. Plus, my nostrils are weird.”

“Your… Nostrils are weird?”

Plume turned around, kicking her feet up in the air. Leaning over the tip of Sophie’s nose, she gazed down at the two long nostrils below her. Air flowed gently in and out as she breathed, though despite being in higher spirits, she still sounded just a little stuffy.

“They seem fine to me,” said Plume, turning back to gaze down at Sophie’s eyes. “Very cozy.”

The princess blushed and chuckled lightly.

“Thanks, Plume.”

She took a deep breath, letting out a slow and relaxed sigh, and then her eyes opened once more.

“Hey, Plume?”

“Yeah, Sophie?”

“When I sneezed into Lady Deselle’s handkerchief… Did  _ you _ make me do that? I didn’t even need to sneeze at first, and then it got  _ real _ bad.”

Now it was the pixie’s turn to blush. She glanced off to the side, sheepishly pressing the tips of her index fingers together.

“Yeah, that was me… Sorry! I just thought it would be funny!”

Sophie chuckled, closing her eyes again for a moment.

“It was! She had it coming. Plus, honestly… It felt  _ really _ good. Really cleared my head.”

Plume smiled, proudly patting the top of Sophie’s nose.

“Well, you’re welcome.”

“Do you think… You could do it again?”

Plume sat up a bit in surprise. Sophie’s big brown eyes avoided her gaze, her cheeks turning bright red.

“I mean, if it’s okay with you. You don’t have to if it’s weird, or something…”

Plume smiled, and she quickly began to laugh heartily. Sophie’s blushing intensified, at least until Plume decided to put her at ease.

“Sophie, it’s okay! Of  _ course _ I can! Making humans sneeze is a pixie specialty!”

Sophie giggled and calmly rubbed a finger under her nose.

“Well, you certainly seem to have that effect on me.”

Plume laughed again and took off from her perch. Once Sophie stopped rubbing her nose, Plume flew underneath it and stood on the human’s upper lip. Air flowed past her on either side, so she carefully cupped her hands together as she began to collect a pile of pixie dust. Once she was confident she had enough, she gave a nod and looked back up at Sophie, though from her current position, she couldn’t see past the giant, looming nose.

“Alright, are you ready?”

Sophie nodded gently, her long nostrils flaring in anticipation.

“Okay Sophie, here it comes!”

Plume reared back, and then she thoroughly blew her pixie dust right up Sophie’s nose. The powder swirled into both nostrils, and it wasn’t long before they began to flare and quiver. Sophie’s lips parted as her breath began to hitch, and Plume quickly took off to keep from tumbling in. She fluttered back up to the top of Sophie’s nose, teasingly tracing a fingertip along her broad septum as she flew. Once she was in a safe place, Plume straddled the bridge of Sophie’s nose and held on tight.

_ “Aah… Hhh… Hh-hoh my god… It tih… It tickles!” _

Plume smiled, feeling Sophie’s nose lurch and wrinkle beneath her. It wouldn’t be long now...

_ “Hi-hih… Hih! It tickles so much! Ah… Haahh… Ah-Ahh-Ahhh-AA _ **_AATSHHHHUUUE!!!!!”_ **

Plume was flung from her perch as Sophie sneezed, tumbling head over heels until she landed on the soft tip of the human’s nose. The bridge of the nose was still scrunched up tightly, and Plume quickly grabbed on once more before Sophie sneezed again.

_ “Heh! Hhh… Hih! Hiih! HASCHHUE!! Ah… Ah! ATSHHUE!” _

After riding out Sophie’s last two sneezes, Plume released her grip and laughed. She felt Sophie firmly rubbing a finger under her nostrils, causing her nose to bend from side to side with the motion, though the motion was gentle enough not to throw her off. Plume waited until Sophie’s crinkled nose and clenched eyes finally relaxed, and then she laid flat on her face and sighed.

“Bless you, Sophie!”

“Thanks, Plume.”


	3. Chapter 3

By the time Sophie finished her bath, Plume had fallen asleep on top of a small washcloth. The princess smiled down at her new friend. If she leaned in close enough, she could even hear Plume let out a tiny snore every now and then. After drying her hair and getting dressed, Sophie returned to Plume and gently scooped up the washcloth. She wondered if it would be better to wake the pixie up, but ultimately Sophie decided to let her sleep. She tucked Plume away in a corner of her closet, someplace out of the way but also not as cramped as the inside of a drawer.

Sophie felt a bit guilty leaving Plume alone, but she wasn’t sure what else to do. She’d have to tell Noele about her when she had a chance. By now, she wanted to introduce the two of them at some point anyway. The princess paused in her bedroom doorway, and after checking to make sure no one was coming down the hall, she tiptoed back to the closet and peeked inside.

_ “Plume?” _ Sophie whispered, wondering if her friend had happened to wake up. She was met with silence, and she smiled as she gave a quick nod.

“Enjoy your nap.”

Sometime later, one of the villa’s housekeepers quietly stepped into Sophie’s bedroom. After closing the door, she surveyed the situation, immediately putting her hands on her hips when she saw the princess’s formal dress in a heap on the floor. Shaking her head, the housekeeper retrieved the garment and laid it out neatly on top of the bed. It would need to be properly cleaned later, but for now she needed to get it out of the way while she tidied up.

Once she was almost finished with her work, the housekeeper slipped into Sophie’s closet. No one possibly could have snuck into the bedroom in the past half a second, but she carefully glanced back at the doorway anyway. After confirming that she was indeed alone, the housekeeper hid herself in the corner of the closet. She perused the princess’s various outfits, and she came to a stop when she noticed a small washcloth sitting on top of a few folded shirts. Smiling to herself, the housekeeper quickly picked it up.

Plume was suddenly jolted awake. She was still on top of the same soft washcloth she’d taken a nap on before, but she could tell she was moving, and fast. Holding on tight to a handful of cloth fibers, the pixie looked around to get her bearings. For better or worse, the first thing she noticed was that she was rocketing upward toward an enormous human nose. This time, however, it wasn’t Sophie’s. This human’s skin was a darker olive tone, and the nostrils were much smaller than Sophie’s, a pair of little, slightly asymmetrical ovals. Plume barely had time to yelp as a strong, drawn-out sniff broke her grip on the washcloth and pulled her straight up into the human’s right nostril.

The pixie tumbled through an unfamiliar nasal passage, eventually catching herself on a nose hair. Even Sophie’s wasn’t the first human nose Plume had visited, but she still didn’t expect something like this. It was rare for her to be sniffed up: usually  _ she _ was the one doing the surprising. Taking in her surroundings only reaffirmed that she was in a very different place. “Cramped” wasn’t the right word, but Sophie’s long nostrils had been downright  _ cavernous _ in comparison. There was also much less nose hair, and overall everything seemed, well,  _ cleaner. _

Scooting up to the edge of the nostril, Plume peeked outside. Past the set of lips below, she could see what looked like a black and white housekeeper’s outfit.  _ Definitely _ not Sophie, though at least Plume could be sure it wasn’t Lady Deselle. Whoever she was, she had made her way out of the bedroom and was walking down the same hall Plume had seen a few times now. She turned down an unfamiliar corridor, and then she stepped into another, decidedly less garish room. Plume wasn’t sure what it was for, but even with her limited view, she could see at least two other people wearing the same housekeeping uniform.

“I’ve finished the Princess’s room,” said Plume’s new host, a familiar accent to her voice. “And I left her dress on the bed to be cleaned.”

“Thank you, Noele,” another, similarly-accented voice replied. “Please help set the table for dinner.”

Noele? Was that what Sophie called her attendant earlier?

“Oui, madame,” said Noele, lightly bowing her head. With that, she turned and headed on her way, carting Plume along with her. The pixie rested her chin impatiently in one hand as Noele walked to the dining room, lazily kicking her feet in the air behind her. She needed to find some way to get back to Sophie’s room. There was nothing stopping her from simply flying out of Noele’s nose, but if she knew Lady Deselle, being spotted by anyone would lead to the entire villa being turned upside down.

Plume continued to watch for a moment after Noele arrived at the dining room. She caught a glimpse of another housekeeper, and she couldn’t quite tell how many sets of footsteps she could hear. Regardless, Noele still wasn’t alone, and Plume had no way of knowing how long it would take her to finish her duties. The pixie stood up and marched deeper into Noele’s nostril, starting to stomp her feet in frustration. After a few angry steps, she felt an all too familiar shuddering all around her. Air rushed in through the nostril as Noele’s breath hitched, and then…

_ “Hh… Hhh… H’shh!” _

Noele’s sneeze was quite small compared to Sophie’s, but it caught Plume off guard, sending her tumbling to the ground. The pixie quickly pushed herself up and shook her head. Then, once she was back on her feet, she smirked. Noele seemed like a nice enough person, but Plume needed her to go somewhere alone, and she couldn’t think of a better way to make it happen.

_ “Sorry Miss Noele,” _ Plume whispered to herself as she walked up to the inside of the human’s septum.  _ “But I hope you’re ticklish!” _

The pixie extended her index finger and gently touched it to Noele’s nasal membrane. At first the human didn’t seem to notice at all, but Plume began to rapidly tickle her finger up and down the soft surface. The results were almost instantaneous.

_ “Hh! Hih… Hh-hih!” _

Noele’s nose trembled and twitched as Plume tickled it from the inside. The housekeeper’s hands were full with a stack of cloth napkins, forcing her to turn her head and duck to the side as she started to sneeze.

_ “Hh...H’shw! Hih! H’shew! Hh… Hhh… Hhhh! Hh’sheew! H’sh! H’shew! Hh’t-schew!” _

Plume fell backwards at the unexpected force of Noele’s final sneeze. The inside of the nostril darkened and everything seemed to stretch vertically as the housekeeper gave her nose an upward wipe, and then Plume’s surroundings gradually returned to normal. The walls all around her seemed a bit wetter than they had been previously, but as far as she could tell, Noele was still intent on working.

“Bless you, Noele,” came the sound of a distant voice. The housekeeper nodded lighty.

“Pardon, thank you.”

Although she was worried that she might tickle Noele a bit  _ too _ much, Plume escalated her plan. She gave her fingertip a twirl against the inside of the housekeeper’s nose, and then she turned around and vigorously fluttered her wings against the same spot. The walls all around her immediately began to ruffle and wrinkle as Noele scrunched up her nose and gasped for breath. Plume clenched her eyes shut and beat her tiny wings as hard as she could, refusing to stop until the human sneezed herself silly. For better or worse, it didn’t take long for Noele to completely lose control.

_ “HAschew! Oh, mon dieu... Hh… Hhh! H’sch-chew! Hih! Hh-tsch! Hh… Hhh… Hhhh! Hih’tsch-shew! Hih! H’shew! H’sh! H’shh! H’chshh! Hh… Heh! Het-schew!” _

“Goodness, Noele, are you alright?”

Plume could hardly hear the voice over her host’s continued sneezing. Noele’s head bobbed listlessly, and the pixie wasn’t sure if she was trying to nod or shake. Feeling a bit tired herself, Plume brought her wings to a stop and gave Noele a chance to respond.

“I’m sorry,” she replied hoarsely. “I hope I’m not coming down with something.”

“Well, it seems to have stopped…”

Plume gave an exhausted  _ “uuughhh…” _ , her shoulders slouching as her arms drooped forward. Backing up toward the inside of Noele’s septum, the pixie scrunched up her face and rapidly fanned her wings once again.

“Maybe you’re right. I think I  _ hih!... Oh… Hhh! Oh no… Hh… Hhh… Hh’t-shew! Hh! H’shh! H’shew!” _

“Alright, Noele. Go get some rest. We’re almost finished.”

“Merci, thank you.  _ Hih! _ S-sorry!  _ Hh’chshew!” _

Not wanting to take any chances, Plume continued tickling Noele’s nose with her wings until she was beyond any doubt they’d left the dining room. That, and she was just too tired to keep going anyway. The pixie fell flat on her face, thankful that the inside of the nostril was so soft. Noele occasionally bucked with continued sniffing and sneezing, but Plume simply rolled with the punches. Once she heard a door open and close, she began to drag herself toward the opening of the nostril, gradually pushing herself up to her feet.

When Plume arrived at the edge of Noele’s nasal passage, it seemed different from how she remembered it. The nostril seemed more elongated, almost stretched. Plume wrinkled her nose in consternation, and as her gaze drifted past the inside of the nose, she noticed an ominous reflection just outside. The pixie’s breath caught in her throat when she realized Noele was holding the tip of her nose up and peering at the reflection in a mirror, and the two of them were staring right at each other.

Plume and Noele both yelped in surprise. The human let go of her nose, and the sudden jolt combined with shock sent Plume tumbling off her feet. She fell right into Noele’s nose hair, and the immediate sound and rumble of hitching breaths told her she should brace herself. Noele reflexively tried to cup her hands over her nose, but she couldn’t quite bring them up to her face in time as she let out a strained  _ “HA-shhew!” _

Though nowhere near as strong as Sophie’s, the human’s sneeze was still more than enough to send Plume sailing out of the nostril. She tried as hard as she could to fly away and escape, but her poor wings were too stiff and tired. The pixie managed to slow her descent, and she landed softly in Noele’s cupped hands. Rolling onto her back, Plume stared up at Noele’s surprised face, panting in defeated exhaustion.

“I’m… I’m sorry,” Plume wheezed, placing a hand on her chest as it rose and fell. “Please don’t… Hurt me… I’m just… Trying to get back… To Sophie…”

Noele’s already shocked eyes widened even further.

“You know Princess Sophie?” she asked. Plume nodded, starting to catch her breath.

“I met her this morning. I’ve been hiding out with her, but we got separated. Do you know where she is now?”

“She’s probably at dueling practice, and then they will have dinner soon,” Noele answered, and then her expression gradually changed from surprised to serious. “I can bring you back to her, but you must tell me the truth. Are you really Princess Sophie’s friend?”

The pixie nodded again, putting on something of a bittersweet smile.

“We haven’t known each other for very long, and she is a bit strange… But Sophie’s been very kind to me.”

Plume gazed up at Noele, looking her in the eye. Hopefully that would be enough. After a moment of thought, the human’s expression softened and she nodded.

“Alright,” Noele responded. “It will be a few hours still, but I can keep you safe. The Princess’s retainer is… Well, persistent.”

Plume giggled softly.

“Lady Deselle? Oh, I know.”

“You’ve met her?”

“Not exactly, but… Let’s just say I spent a good while in Sophie’s nose before I wound up in yours.”

“Is that so?” Noele asked, raising an eyebrow with a smirk. Plume put on a mischievous smile of her own.

“Oh, while we’re on the subject, how come you were sniffing Sophie’s washcloth?”

Noele’s face immediately turned bright red, and she awkwardly glanced away to the side.

“Well, you see, I… I can’t tell you!”

Plume giggled again, smugly clasping her hands behind her head. Eventually Noele looked back at her, frowning and flaring her nostrils in frustration. The housekeeper’s nose was quite different from Sophie’s: the princess’s was also rather long, but it was quite wide and gently sloped, while Noele’s was narrower and even longer, with a slight bump at the bridge and a sharp upturn just above the tip. It looked like a comfy place for a pixie to take a nap.

“Please don’t tease me about that, miss… Um… What should I call you?”

“I’m Plume,” the pixie replied, dropping her smirk.

“And my name is Noele Rousseau. It’s nice to meet you, Plume. May I…” The housekeeper paused, smiling and giggling to herself. “May I call you Plumeau? It means ‘feather duster.’”

Plume giggled back, raising her eyebrows in surprise.

“Why ‘feather duster’?” she asked through her laughter. Noele shrugged.

“Because I think it sounds cute, and you tickle noses.”

Plume nodded in acknowledgement.

“That’s fair, I suppose. Go right ahead.”

“Thank you. Now, we must find somewhere to hide you. You  _ could _ go back in my nose, but if you make me sneeze much more, Lady Deselle will probably make me stay in the servants’ quarters all night, and we won’t be able to meet Sophie. I could put you right here, if that’s okay.”

Noele brought one hand up to her chest and lightly patted the breast pocket on her uniform. Now that Plume took a better look, it wasn’t a traditional maid’s outfit, but rather more of a feminine suit, though still in black and white with a few frills. Noele’s idea seemed simple enough, and Plume gave her agreement. The housekeeper carefully brought her hand up to the pocket, and after the two exchanged a brief smile, the pixie hopped inside.

Plume could have let herself slide all the way down to the bottom of the pocket, but while the rest seemed appealing, she instead hooked her feet into the stitches near the top and carefully peeked her head out. She liked being able to see what was going on, and the pocket provided a much better view than trying to peer out through a nostril. Looking up at Noele’s face, Plume found the human smiling warmly at her.

“Are you comfy down there?” she asked. Plume nodded, letting out a relaxed sigh. Noele winked, and then she gave herself a look in the mirror.

“Alright. I need to get back to work,” Noele said, confidently rubbing a finger back and forth under her nose. “Then we’ll both get to see Sophie this evening.”

Plume held on tight as Noele turned on her heel and departed the washroom. She spent a few minutes in the back rooms, staying out of sight, and then she made her way down a set of stairs and into a large laundry room. Still cautiously observing from Noele’s pocket, Plume watched as she worked with another housekeeper to wash various garments. The sweet scent of detergent tickled her tiny nostrils, causing her to sniff and wrinkle her nose.

_ “Hih! Hi’KSH!” _

Before long, the pixie couldn’t help but sneeze. She lost her grip on the edge of the pocket and tumbled gently down to the bottom, landing in a heap. As she straightened herself up, she felt a light tap below her feet and heard Noele whispering from above.

_ “Are you alright, Plumeau?” _

_ “I’m fine,” _ Plume whispered back.  _ “I think the soap is making me… Hhh… M-making me… Hih! Hh’KSHII! Making me sneeze...” _

_ “Aww, à tes souhaits,” _ cooed Noele.  _ “That means ‘bless you.’” _

Plume smiled and giggled, rubbing a finger under her nose.

_ “Thank yhh… Thank… Haa-ISHH! Thanks…” _

Plume decided to remain at the bottom of the pocket, though the tickly aroma still managed to reach her nose. She kept her sneezing to a minimum to avoid being heard, but she was still stuffed up and snuffly. Fortunately Noele didn’t spend too much longer with the laundry, and once they were back up the stairs, Plume’s nose quickly cleared up. Since Noele and Sophie’s clothes hadn’t made her sneeze before, she hoped it was only the smell that had been bothering her, though she remained a bit nervous about it.

Noele ate her dinner in the servants’ quarters, along with a few other housekeepers. They spoke to each other in a language Plume didn’t understand, though she could tell they seemed happy. Then, after cleaning up and washing the dishes, Noele headed back downstairs to the laundry room. Plume could still smell the scent of detergent in the air, so she pouted and held her nose. A door opened and closed, and then the light filtering in from the top of the pocket was cut off almost entirely. Starting to climb back up for a look, the pixie heard a few soft snaps, and then a smaller, dimmer light began to illuminate her surroundings.

Poking her head out of the pocket, Plume found herself in a dark, dusty tunnel. Noele was holding a small candle by a metal taper, and she was practically tiptoeing ahead, her jaw clenched.

“Where are we?” Plume asked, looking up at what she could see of Noele’s face past her chin. The housekeeper shushed her softly.

_ “I’ll tell you in a moment,” _ she whispered, and Plume nodded in understanding. Noele continued to make her way down the passage as slowly and quietly as she could. The pixie watched her occasionally reach the index finger of her free hand up to her nose to flick lightly at her flaring nostrils. Eventually, the human’s whole body tensed and she weakly raised her hand up to fan at her face.

_ “Hh… Hhh! H’shw! Hih! H’shh! Hih-shew!” _

The candle flickered as Noele jerked forward, but she held it steady enough to stay lit. She gently rubbed a finger under her nose with a quiet sniff, and then she shook her head and cleared her throat.

“Excuse me, it’s quite dusty in here,” said Noele, closer to her normal volume. “I suppose it’s safe enough to talk now. There are some secret passages that run through the villa, like this one. Only a few of the housekeepers know about them, as well as Sophie and I. We’re going to someplace safe where we can meet Sophie alone, though it’s quite far.”

“Does Lady Deselle know?” Plume asked nervously. Noele shook her head and rubbed her nose again.

“I don’t think so. To be honest, I’m sure there’s some Ivontis spymaster who knows exactly what we’ve been doing, but so far, no one has said anything.”

“Do you and Sophie do this often?”

Noele gave a knowing smile.

“Yes, very.”

Not expecting something so undercover, Plume remained nervously silent for the remainder of the journey. After what must have been close to twenty minutes, they arrived at the end of the tunnel. A wooden ladder reached upward toward the ceiling, and a bit of moonlight shone through what Plume assumed must have been a trapdoor. Noele blew out her candle, setting it on a shelf beside the ladder, and then she began to climb.

When Noele emerged from the trapdoor, Plume gazed all around in awe. They appeared to be in the ruins of an old tower, surrounded on all sides by tall trees. She could see the stars through the canopy, and the sounds of the wind and birds in the branches were so soothing after a stressful day. Noele knocked on the side of a pillar five times and waited for a few silent seconds. Then, she carefully closed the trapdoor and made her way up a set of steps to what remained of a second floor.

“Here we are,” she said, glancing down at her pocket.

“It’s so pretty,” Plume replied. Noele smiled and sat down against the wall, looking up at the sky herself.

“I know, I love it here. Now we just need to wait for Sophie.”

Plume sighed contentedly, letting her arms hang over the front of the pocket. She wasn’t sure if she actually dozed off or if she simply lost track of time, but eventually she found herself sliding back down to the bottom of Noele’s pocket. A little rest wouldn’t hurt while they waited for the princess. Before she could close her eyes again, however, she heard the soft creak of the trapdoor opening below.

Noele waited for the five knocks, and then she tapped twice on the wood floor beside her. Footfalls began to make their way up the steps, and the housekeeper quickly returned to her feet, smiling eagerly. When she saw Sophie ascending toward her, she resisted the urge to run up and give her a hug, not wanting to knock her back down the stairs. Still, they both smiled excitedly, and once Sophie arrived on the second floor, she and Noele threw their arms around each other and shared a tender kiss. After just a few seconds, however, Sophie seemed to lose her spark, letting one hand fall from Noele’s back and loosening her grip with the other.

“What’s wrong, Sophie?” Noele asked, pulling back in concern. The princess shook her head, taking one of Noele’s hands in her own.

“It’s just… I lost something important earlier today,” she said, glancing down and to the side. Noele smiled, and she gently hooked the side of a knuckle under Sophie’s nose, using it to lift her face. The princess gave a soft gasp, not sure how to react.

“Well, I have something that I think will make you very happy,” Noele replied. She removed her finger from Sophie’s nose, and she lightly tapped her chest just below her breast pocket.

“Why don’t you come on out, Plumeau?”

“Plume!?” Sophie stammered, her eyes going wide.

“Sophie!”

The pixie rocketed out of Noele’s pocket, her tired wings finding new strength. She flew straight at the tip of Sophie’s nose, sinking into the soft skin as she gave it a big hug, or at least as big as her tiny arms and legs could manage.

“Plume, I’m so glad you’re okay,” whimpered Sophie, tears forming at the corners of her eyes. The pixie pulled herself up slightly and patted the top of the princess’s nose.

“Aww, Sophie! Don’t cry!”

Sophie sniffed hard and wiped her eyes behind her glasses.

“I’m… I’m not crying!” she choked, sniffing again as she slid a finger under her nostrils. “I have… Allergies!”

All three ladies giggled, and then Sophie threw her arms around Noele once more.

“I’m so glad you found her!”

The housekeeper smiled and blushed.

“Well, it wasn’t too hard…”

They separated, and Plume fully pulled herself up onto the top of Sophie’s nose to sit down. The princess crossed her eyes to look down at the pixie, then she looked back at Noele.

“I’m happy you met already too, whew. Though I suppose I should introduce you anyway. Plume, this is Noele, and she’s my girlfriend.”

Sophie mostly intended it as a joke, assuming the pixie had figured it out already. However, Plume took a deep, shrill breath and let out an  _ “aaawwwww!” _ that seemed to go on forever, making both Sophie and Noele blush.

“That’s so sweet!” the pixie cooed, clasping her hands together. Then, she gasped and threw her arms around herself.

“What does Lady Deselle think!?”

Sophie and Noele briefly glanced at each other before they both broke out laughing.

“As far as we know, she has no idea,” said Noele. “Nobody does.”

“Unfortunately, we have to keep it a secret for now,” Sophie explained, still smiling despite the gravity of the subject. “It’s… A bit of a long story.”

“I don’t mind,” said Plume, resting her chin in her hands. “If you’re alright telling me, that is. It’s okay.”

Sophie closed her eyes and lightly shook her head.

“Actually, I think telling you will feel really nice. To be honest, I hate my family.”

The princess paused, shaking her head again.

“No, I shouldn’t say that. I don’t even  _ know _ most of my family. I hope at least  _ some _ of them feel the same way we do. I hate what my family has done. I might be ‘Sixth Princess of the Ivontis Empire,’ but we’re not even in the Empire right now. The villa, and everything around here, belongs to another country. My grandfather decided to invade almost fifty years ago, and now everyone who lives here has to work for my father.”

Plume gazed mournfully up at Sophie’s eyes.

“That’s awful. Is there anything you can do?”

“I hope so,” Sophie replied, staring off into the distance. “My dueling teacher is part of a resistance movement, and when we’re ready, we’re going to run away and join them.”

She and Noele held hands and shared a smile. Plume similarly nestled into the soft skin of Sophie’s nose, looking back and forth between them. She didn’t know much about how the human world worked, but if the two of them wanted to stand up to injustice, she hoped they would succeed. Then, just as Plume calmly closed her eyes, Sophie tensed and wrinkled her nose.

_ “Ehh… Hh… Hihh… P-Plume, I… Hh-hhh… Hih! I think I… Hhh! I think I’m gonna…” _

“Oh!” Plume gasped, fluttering a safe distance away. “Go ahead!”

Sophie nodded weakly, her long nostrils flaring. She slowly lifted two outstretched fingers up to her face, pressing them under her nose, and then…

_ “Th-thank… Hh-hh! HA-CHSSsjuh… Hih! Hh-hh-hh! Eh-CHHKkg!” _

The princess stifled two strong sneezes, but she wasn’t finished just yet. Smiling at Sophie as she hitched and struggled, Noele reached into one of her other pockets to retrieve a tissue. She scooted a bit closer, and then she brought the tissue up to Sophie’s nose, gently cradling her flaring nostrils.

“Here, Sophie,” she cooed with a nod. The princess stopped holding back and tried to give a nod of her own in response, but it was hard to tell it apart from her hitching breaths.

_ “Hh… Hih… Hh-heh! Hihh! AASHHUE! Heh! Ha-SHUE!” _

“À tes souhaits.”

_ “Hih! Hh… H-hold on…” _

“One more?”

_ “One muhh… Hh… Hih… One more… Hhh! Hh-hh-hh… Hh! Aa-AASHHUUE!!!” _

“Bless you, Sophie!” said Plume, fluttering a bit closer. Still holding the tissue to Sophie’s nose, Noele smiled and turned to the pixie.

“Isn’t she cute when she sneezes?” she teased. Plume giggled and nodded.

“Ugh, stop it!” Sophie protested, blushing and glaring off to the side. “I can’t help it…”

“I know,” said Noele. “Now blow.”

Sophie groaned, but she did as she was told. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath through her mouth and blew out through her nose. She sniffed twice rapidly, and Noele gently wiped her nose with the tissue before folding it over and enveloping her nostrils again. Sophie inhaled and blew again, mercifully sounding less congested this time.

“There,” Noele whispered, removing the tissue and crumpling it up. Sophie continued to blush, but she smiled.

“Thanks. I’m glad we found this place, but… Ugh. Sometimes it really aggravates my allergies.”

Sophie took a moment to rub an outstretched finger firmly under her nose, and then she sighed and slouched against the wall behind her.

“Why don’t you tell us about yourself, Plume?” Sophie suggested. “I feel like I’ve been talking your ear off all day.”

“Who, me?” Plume responded, laying a hand on her chest. “I don’t know, there’s not that much to tell.”

“Well, where are you from?” asked Noele. Plume placed a hand on her chin, staring off into the distance.

“I’m… Not really sure, honestly. Pixies aren’t really  _ from _ anywhere. We’re just  _ around, _ I guess. I travel a lot. I don’t know much about human countries, but I’ve been to a lot of places. Hidden in a lot of noses.”

The pixie smiled and stuck out her tongue, earning a smile from her human friends. She then gently fluttered back down to Sophie and curled up on the tip of her nose once again.

“But sometimes pixies will settle down, when we find someplace we really like.”

Sophie smiled, briefly glancing over at Noele before looking down her nose at the pixie.

“Well, I’m really glad I met you, Plume.”

“Me too, Plumeau,” added Noele.

“Would you like to stay the night? Tomorrow should be less hectic, and… Maybe we can talk some more. And you can decide what you want to do next.”

The pixie sat up, beaming with excitement.

“I’d love to!”

Sophie nodded gently, and then she stood up and helped Noele to her feet.

“Alright, sounds like a plan. We should probably head back before it gets  _ too _ late.”

And so, the trio walked down to the trapdoor. Noele gave Sophie another tissue to blow her nose into, hopefully clearing up her allergies before the long walk back through the tunnel, and then they descended the ladder and started on their way. Sophie held out a small candle just as Noele had before, and eventually Plume began to fly slightly ahead, giving off just enough pixie dust to produce a faint glow. It was still difficult to see in the dark, dusty air, but they still had all the visibility they needed.

After around fifteen minutes, Plume remembered that meant they had almost arrived. She briefly looked back at the others, sharing an affirming nod with Sophie. Then, just after she faced forward again, she heard a light sniff from behind. She slowed her pace and turned around again, and to her surprise, Sophie had already caught up to her. The princess’s wide nose loomed just overhead, and before either of them could react, Sophie gave another unconscious sniff. Plume gave a tiny yelp as the suction pulled her right up Sophie’s nose, and she tumbled back into the depths of the left nostril.

A tickle surged through Sophie’s nose as she felt Plume disturb the fine hairs inside. She gave a stifled snort, remembering to be quiet halfway through the reflex, and fortunately that was enough for Noele to realize what had happened. Stepping up behind the princess, she took the candle and held it a safe distance away. Then, she wrapped her right arm around Sophie’s shoulder and firmly held two outstretched fingers under her nostrils just as her breath started to hitch.

_ “Hh… Hehh… Hih!” _

_ “No, Sophie! Shhh!” _ pleaded Noele. She pressed her fingers upward, hoping to squelch Sophie’s nose up enough that she couldn’t sneeze. Maybe they were still far enough from the villa, but if someone happened to be in the right room at the right time, it was too great a chance to take.

_ “I’m… Hh… Hih… I’m trying… Hhh! I c- Hh! Hh-hih! I can’t!” _

Inside the princess’s nose, Plume wrapped her arms around herself and tried to hold perfectly still. This was easier said than done with Sophie sputtering and hitching, but she made a valiant effort.

_ “Sophie, I’m sorry!” _ the pixie whispered, clenching her eyes shut.  _ “Please don’t sneeze!” _

_ “Hh! Hihh! Hhheeeh!” _

Sophie gasped for breath, and Noele scrunched up her face in fear. Even that might have been too loud… Then, after freezing at the height of her buildup for a moment, Sophie let out a slow, relaxed sigh.

_ “Okay… I’m okay… Sorry.” _

She crossed her eyes and looked down her nose for any sign of Plume.

_ “Plume? Are you alright?” _

Still tense, the pixie’s eyes snapped open. Despite all odds, everything seemed fine. However, she was surrounded on all sides by sensitive nose hairs, and she knew she had to stay put.

_ “I’m okay!” _ she whispered just loudly enough for Sophie to hear.  _ “I don’t want to move, though, or else you might sneeze!” _

_ “Alright,” _ Sophie replied with a very gentle nod.  _ “We’ll keep going. We’re almost there.” _

After just a few more minutes, Sophie and Noele arrived at the end of the passageway. Noele tiptoed around Sophie, turning with each step to face toward her, and the two of them shared a brief kiss. They smiled and hugged each other, and Noele gently placed her hands on either side of Sophie’s face.

_ “Goodnight, Sophie,” _ she whispered almost silently, and then she gave the princess another quick kiss on the lips. The two closed their eyes and gently nuzzled the tips of their noses together, causing them to squish softly from side to side. Then, Noele leaned in close and whispered again.

_ “And this one’s for you, Plumeau!” _

With that, Noele gave an awkward but no less tender kiss right to the underside of Sophie’s nose. Plume blew a kiss of her own and waved goodbye.

_ “Goodnight, Noele!” _

Sophie stepped out of sight, and Noele slipped through the secret door into the laundry room. Then, the princess hurried as quickly and quietly as she could down another passageway until she arrived at a cramped wooden staircase. Once she heard the creak of Noele heading up the stairs outside, Sophie began to ascend at the same time to mask her footsteps. After a walk down two more short tunnels, the princess arrived at another door that led right into the back corner of her bedroom closet. She silently closed the door behind her, and then she cautiously peered into her room. The lights were out, and the door was closed, just as she’d left it. A few pillows were arranged on the bed roughly in the shape of a person under the covers, and Sophie quickly grabbed one just as her breath began to hitch again.

_ “Hhh… Hih… Hheh!” _

“Sophie?” whispered Plume, hoping it was finally alright for her to sneeze. It was difficult to see in the dim light, but she could tell the nasal passage around her was trembling and scrunching up.

_ “Heh… H-hang on… Hh… Hhh! H-hah… Hafta… Sn-snee…” _

Plume smirked. Leaning to one side, she lightly tickled the ground beside her with a fingertip. This was more than enough to send Sophie over the edge almost immediately, and she held the pillow against her face as she doubled over with a powerful but muffled  _ “AaaSHHMFF!!” _

The pixie tumbled through Sophie’s nostril and landed gently on the pillow. She rolled onto her back and stared up at the human as she lowered the cushion away from her from her face, and the two of them began to giggle softly. Sophie set the pillow down on her bedside table as she got ready for bed, and Plume quickly found herself dozing off. She was just barely awake by the time Sophie climbed into bed, and the light  _ clack _ of the princess setting her glasses down on the table was almost the only thing that kept her up.

“Hey, Plume?” Sophie whispered, turning her head to look over at the pixie.

“Yes, Sophie?” Plume answered with a yawn. Sophie blushed subtly, and she rubbed her index finger slowly back and forth under her nostrils.

“You… Can sleep in my nose again, if you want.”

Filled with a rush of excitement, Plume shot up and flew over to the princess’s face. She touched down on Sophie’s philtrum, and after taking a second to look up at the human’s broad nose from below, she skipped over to the septum and gave it a big hug.

“Thanks, Sophie!” cooed Plume, nuzzling her face into the soft skin. Sophie wrinkled her nose and smiled.

“Plume, that tickles!”

“Sorry!” the pixie whispered, taking a step back. She closed her eyes and leaned forward on the tips of her toes, and she kissed Sophie right on the septum, just as Noele had done before. Finally, she took a step toward the princess’s left nostril and paused for a moment right at the edge. Plume looked back over Sophie’s body at the still, silent bedroom, down at her slightly parted lips, and then up toward the wide tip of her nose. Taking a deep breath, the pixie sighed and smiled happily.

“Goodnight, Sophie.”


End file.
